


You've Got a Friend in Me

by genericfanatic



Series: The Saga of Friendship [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, sex mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-27
Updated: 2017-05-27
Packaged: 2018-11-05 17:05:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11017764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/genericfanatic/pseuds/genericfanatic
Summary: Keith wants a friendship as close as Lance and Hunk's, but unfortunately, neither he nor his potential friend Pidge have any idea how to go about it.





	You've Got a Friend in Me

**Author's Note:**

> it's again, not really in the universe as the 1st two friendship sagas, but its a good friend fic, so....here we go.

Keith and Lance were dating. 

But Lance and Hunk? Lance and Hunk had a relationship Keith didn’t understand. It was just as close as his romantic relationship with Lance (perhaps even stronger given how long they had been together.) It wasn’t quite the same as being brothers, though maybe that was the closest analogy. They were just…close.

Lance told him they were QPP’s, queerplatonic partners. Boyfriends and Girlfriends would come and go for them, but Lance and Hunk were together for the long haul. 

“Not that, like, I think you’ll just come and go or anything,” Lance reassured Keith as he explained it to him, “You know I care about you, and-and I want you to stay with me and be with me and—“

“Lance, I get it,” Keith said, smiling as he pressed his lips onto Lance’s, laying on his chest on one of their beds. This was sorta what they made do with ‘date night’ laying together in one of their rooms. “I get it, I’m your romantic partner, he’s your platonic partner, neither of us come first or second or anything like that.” 

Lance smiled, “Exactly! So, nothing to worry about, right?” He looked just a little concerned. If Keith had to guess, several romantic partners of his must not have been okay with him and his best friend being so close and comfortable with one another. 

Keith nodded still pensive. “Right,” he agreed.

Lance looked suspiciously between his eyes, “Something’s off. You have your broody Keith-y face.” He poked the crease on Keith’s forehead that made Keith laugh.

“Alright,” Keith said, “Maybe…maybe I am a little jealous.”

Lance’s face fell. “Keith, I told you, nothing’s going on between-“

“No, no,” Keith said, grabbing Lance’s face and kissing him before he could finish his thought. “No, that’s not what I mean,” He said, “I’m not jealous of Hunk, I’m jealous…I’m jealous of what you two have.” Lance raised an eyebrow, confused. “You two just seem so…comfortable around each other. You know each other so well, its like you don’t have to hold anything back.”

Lance thought back. “I guess that’s true. I mean, we’ve been buddies for a long time.”

Keith gave a shrug, “So, I just wish I had someone like that.”

Lance stroked Keith’s hair and he felt instantly calmed. “You know you can always be yourself with me, right?”

Keith smirked. “I know. But I also wanna get in your pants, so…”

“Ooh, that sounds like fun, lets do that,” Lance said. 

“See, this is exactly what I’m saying it’s not the same,” Keith said. Lance was still making eyebrows at him. It was not exactly the most seducing thing he’s ever done, but for some reason… “Yeah, okay, lets do it.”

 

A half hour later they continued the conversation as though there had been no pause. “What about Shiro?” Lance asked, “You two are close, right?”

“Mm. Yeah, I mean, we are, its just…Shiro’s like an older brother to me. Kinda a mentor-type figure. I dunno, it’s not the same.”

“Well, maybe you can friend-seduce a QPP for yourself.” Lance says, “Lets see….we have Coran, Allura and Pidge…”

“And Hunk,” Keith offered. 

Lance shook his head, “Hunk is mine you can’t have Hunk.”

Keith rolled his eyes, “Now who’s being jealous?”

“Mine, Keith.”

Keith smiled “Alright. Well, Coran’s out. I like him, but…I just…don’t see that working.”

“Hey, Coran’s great, I bet he’d give great cuddles.”

Keith screwed up his face. “I don’t see it.” 

Lance leaned in to nuzzle Keith’s cheek and whispered, “Mustache tickles.” Keith snorted, turning away from him to giggle like a school girl. “Well, if not Coran, there’s Allura. You guys ran away together once.”

Keith sighed, “I like Allura. But…I don’t know, we don’t have much in common.”

“You’re both aliens.”

“And I’m sure she’d LOVE to be reminded of that part of my genome,” Keith said. 

“Okay, what about Pidge, then?” Lance said, “You guys have some things in common. You’re both short,” Keith punched him in his shoulder, “Okay, okay. You’re both quiet. You hate the Garrison for keeping the Kerberos mission secret…you like solving mysteries. Your older brother figures went missing at around the same time and you went to lengths to save them. You’re both kinda badasses…” He trailed off, “actually the more I think about it, the more it kinda makes sense.”

Keith takes a breath, thinking. “I…maybe.” He thought, “But…what do I do? I mean, do I just go up and tell him ‘hey lets be best friends.” 

“Geez, sometimes I forget how blunt you are,” Lance said. “Like I said, friend-seduce her, charm her, get her interested,”

Keith nodded slowly, “So, just do the opposite of what you would do?”

The conversation was immediately deterred as Lance attacked Keith for his comment, and then that quickly devolved into a round 2. 

 

The next day, though, Keith thought more of what Lance had said. He went down to the Engine room where Pidge was typing away, oblivious to Keith’s presence. 

Keith tilted his head at her. To be honest he didn’t really know much about her. He knew facts, and they worked together well enough, but he didn’t really KNOW her. Everything had made so much sense when Lance was listing their similarities, but all Keith could think of was their differences. Pidge had a nice nuclear family, even if some of them were missing. Keith had a father who left him to the state. Pidge liked indoors and tech, Keith liked outdoors, and…well he didn’t mind tech, but preferred using tech more than designing or making it. Pidge was younger than Keith. She was a girl and trans, he was a boy and cis. 

“You’re starting to border on the ‘creepy’ side of things,” Pide said. He hadn’t realized she was aware of his presence. 

Swallowing guilty he walked into the room. “Sorry. I didn’t want to interrupt.” He covered for himself. 

“Don’t sweat it. What’s broken?” She asked, not looking up from her keyboard.

“Sorry?”

“I’m assuming something’s broken and you’d like me to fix it. What is it?”

Keith shook his head, “Oh, no. Actually,” he coughed, trying to think of what to say, “actually, I was wondering if you wanted to train with me.”

That got Pidge to look up from the laptop and stop typing. “What?”

“Training,” Keith said, “You know, sparring. We can work with close combat bayards if you want.” 

Pidge blinked at him, looking between his eyes to try and determine if he was serious. “Alright, I give up, what’s the joke?”

Keith put his hands in his pockets, “No joke. Just wondering. You don’t have to if you’re not up for it.”

“Oh, I’m up for it,” She said, closing the laptop and standing, “It’s just usually you ask Shiro or Lance to spar.”

Keith shrugged, “I know all their moves. I thought something different would be good.”

Pidge squinted at him. “Okay…” She said, still openly suspicious. “Lets spar, then.”

 

They were a couple rounds in when Pidge grappled Keith around his legs, tripping him and sending him to the ground, “Hey!” Keith protested, “I thought we promised no long range!”

“How else do you expect me to win?” Pidge said, gasping and sweating. “Besides, now I have you in prime position to ask you questions. Questions like, what is this all about?” 

Keith raised an eyebrow. He wanted to plead innocence once again, but remembered Pidge’s bayard had the ability to electrocute its victims. “I…I thought we could be friends.”

Pidge blinked at him, her eyebrows shooting up. Of all the things he could have said, she was not expecting that. “Friends?”

“Yeah,” Keith said, “You know, like Lance and Hunk are friends.”

Pidge retracted her bayard, freeing his legs, “Oh,” She said. “I…oh.”

“I didn’t mean to impose,” Keith said, “I just thought…it could be nice. Besides it was mostly Lance’s idea. You don’t have to if you don’t want, we can just forget this whole thing.” 

“No, no,” Pidge said, “Sorry, I…its fine. I just…no one’s ever really actively wanted to be my friend before.”

Keith sat up. “Really?” He asked, “But Hunk and Lance—“

“Hunk and Lance were my partners at the Garrison, we were forced to hang out.” Pidge said, “Shiro feels responsible for me ‘cause of what happened to Matt, and Matt…” She swallowed, looking away, “Anyway. I’ve never really been good at…at people. I’m better at machines. So, not a lot of people lining up to be my friend.” 

Keith nodded, “I get it,” he said, “I’m kinda the same.

Pidge snorted, “The Garrison’s golden boy? Sure.”

Keith rolls his eyes, “Lance is the only one who calls me that, and that’s just ‘cause he was really gay for me.” At that, Pidge burst out in laughter. “Yeah, but just ‘cause I was good at piloting and stuff doesn’t mean I knew how to…people…well.”

Pidge nodded, sitting beside him on the training room floor, “So…what’s your thought here, we just…don’t people…together?”

Keith shrugged, “I guess so.”

Pidge nodded again, looking off into middle distance, thinking. “Okay then. I’ll give it a shot.”

Keith smiled and offered her a hand to get them both up. 

 

“So, how do we do this?” Pidge asked. 

Keith took a sigh, looking at the couch. Lance and Hunk were having one of their ‘friend dates’ so Keith had come to Pidge to see if she wanted to do something similar. “Well,” He said, “When Lance and Hunk do these kinda things, they start off with…cuddling…”

Pidge looked as tense as Keith felt, “Ah…huh. Okay.”

“It’s to make us more comfortable, I think.” Keith said. 

Pidge nodded, psyching herself up, “Okay, lets do this.” 

They sat down next to each other on the couch. Gingerly, Keith reached his arms out and wrapped them around Pidge’s shoulders. One of Pidge’s arms was trapped between them, but she reached her other arm out to wrap around his stomach. She tried leaning her head on his shoulder, but lifted it back up when it strained her neck. “Okay,” She said, “step one complete. Now what.”

Keith swallowed, tense all over, “Uh, well, Lance and Hunk usually like…talk about things.”

“What kind of things?”

Keith hesitated for just a moment, “Feelings stuff.” 

“…Ah,” Pidge said, “Right. Sharing. Communication.”

“The cornerstone of any relationship,” Keith said, quoting Lance. Pidge nodded. 

“Uh…okay. I um…I miss my brother and Dad. A lot.” Pidge offered. 

Keith nodded stiffly. “I understand. Shiro was like a brother to me, so when he disappeared, I felt really lost.”

“Lost,” Pidge said, “That’s a good word for it. How I’m…feeling.”

Silence fell over the room once again. If there was a cricket, it would have been chirping. Keith opened his mouth, closed it again, and then finally attempted coherent speech, “I feel weird about being part Galra.” 

“Yeah?” Pidge said.

Keith nodded, “I’m getting used to it, though.”

Pidge nodded as well. “You know none of us really think of you different right? Like, you’re still Keith.”

“I know,” He said, “Like I said, getting used to it. Plus the Blade of Marmora is cool and everything.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

More silence. 

Keith was racking his entire brain looking for a conversation, when finally Pidge started talking again, “Can I say something? In the name of open communication?”

“Sure,”

“This is really awkward.”

Keith hesitated for just a second, before releasing Pidge from the hug, “Yeah, it is.”

Pidge pushed herself up off the couch, “It was a good thought,” she said, “Just…”

“Yeah,” Keith agreed. 

Pidge nodded, “I’m gonna go code some stuff,” she said, heading out.

“See ya,” Keith said, watching her go. 

Somehow, Keith felt even lonelier than before. 

 

“You gave UP?” Hunk said, screwing a bolt in.

“We tried it, we didn’t like it,” Pidge said, “I guess we’re just not like you two.”

“What exactly did you do?

Pidge paused a minute, typing instructions into her laptop. “Screw in that one next,” she said, “We did exactly what you and Lance do all the time. We hugged and tried to share our feelings, it was awkward, we stopped.” 

Hunk sighed. “Oh, pidgey, pidge podge. That’s some advanced level friendship you’re attempting, and you’re only on level one!”

Pidge leaned back and groaned in exasperation. “Ugh, why is this so complicated?!”

“Says the teenage girl literally doing rocket science.” Hunk said, clamping the wing down on the rocket drone. “What’s next?”

Pidge checked the blueprints she’d designed. “I think we’re ready to install the engine.” Hunk smirked, getting the engine he’d built. “So, just out of curiosity,” she said, “what is friendship level one?”

She was not pleased with the smug smile on Hunk’s face. “Well,” he said, “you could start with some common points of interest. Activities to do together. Just casual, comfortable stuff.”

Pidge screwed up her face, thinking. “I don’t think we have any similar interests,” she said.

“Well, maybe you could do some of you’re individual interests together. Sometimes it’s nice to just exist alongside someone else. Like, sometimes Lance would knit while I was cooking, and we’d just talk.”

“Lance knits?!” Pidge said, amazed. Hunk nodded, proud of his friend as he attempted several methods of moving the engine. It was far heavier than it looked. “Well….Keith’s hobby is exercise. Mine is coding. Neither of those are exactly fun stuff to do together…I dunno, it’s not…it’s not the same.”

Hunk shrugged as best as he could, lugging the engine to the rocket. “I don’t know either. Look, I don’t wanna tell you what to do, but I do think you and Keith could be good for each other. I know you both have trouble being as social as Lance and I are, so, it could help a bit without being too much.” Hunk finally let the engine sit on the floor, two feet from where it was supposed to be. “Speaking of help, can I get a hand, here?”

Pidge didn’t hesitate a moment before she started clapping for him. Hunk glared at her. 

 

Pidge was smarter with her sneaking and creeping than Keith was. She stayed in the observation deck, watching Keith go through his warm-ups. He was currently “jogging” around the edges of the room. His jogging, of course, seemed faster than most people’s running.

Pidge sighed. Sure, she trained as much as the other paladins, but it wasn’t exactly her idea of fun. She’d much rather be working on her laptop, and that didn’t sound like something Keith would be interested in. 

Maybe this really wasn’t meant to be, she thought. She liked Keith, and she related to him, somewhat…and she could use a close friend, she had felt so alone after Matt disappeared….

Keith stopped jogging to start push-ups on the ground. Pidge got an idea, collected her laptop and made her way down. Keith was turned away from the door and didn’t notice her presence. Pidge steeled herself, then walked up and confidently sat on Keith’s back.

Keith froze in plank. She could practically see his thought process as he recognized who it was. She reopened her laptop and started typing as though nothing were out of the ordinary. 

Clearly deciding to roll with it, Keith continued his push-up routine as though nothing had changed.

Pidge was halfway through a stream of data when Keith grunted “Up.” Reluctantly, she stood, allowing Keith to sit up for a moment, drink water, and wipe some sweat away. He then made his way to the pull up bar, hanging from it before crossing his legs in the air, making a lap. “You want a seat?” He asked.

Pidge raised an eyebrow, but hesitantly sat in his lap, her legs dangling just inches from the ground. Keith started his pull up routine, as Pidge resumed her work. “I don’t weigh anything to you, do I?” She asked. 

He let out a labored chuckle, “You weigh something,” He said, “like, a couple grape’s worth.” She glared at him over her shoulder. “Nah, but this is good, it works my core and legs.” 

“Glad to help,” She muttered, bitterly.

He let out another chuckle. “What are you working on?” 

“Just some more projections on where the Galra are and good targets for us to hit.”

He hummed, interested. “How do you do that, exactly?”

Pidge thought for a second on how to summarize. “It’s like…mostly compiling data from Galra ships we’ve encountered and overlaying it on Coran’s map of the universe. Then it’s all about looking for patterns and stuff.”

Keith hummed again. “Cool. Where did you learn to do that?”

“Oh, uh,” she said awkwardly, “well, I made some similar databases at home as a kid, looking for…” She trailed off. 

“For?”

“…cryptids.”

Keith nearly dropped her, making her jump out of his lap and clutch her laptop to her chest. “Careful!” she chastised him, “My whole life is on this thing!”

“Sorry,” he said, jumping down from the bar. “It’s just…did you say cryptids? Like, bigfoot and mothman, that kinda stuff.”

Pidge adjusted her glasses, “Look, I know it’s kinda weird, but—“

“No!” He said, “No, that’s not what I mean, I mean,” he swallowed, trying to stop himself from tripping over his tongue, “I mean, I like them too.”

Pidge blinked, “You’re a believer?”

“I literally spent a year alone in a shack looking for aliens,” Keith said, “I’m…actually kinda disappointed I left all my notes on tracking things back on Earth.”

Pidge had to stop herself from literally vibrating from excitement, “You’re serious?” Keith nodded. “Do you…” she said hesitantly, “Do you want to go over my notes?”

Keith’s eyes glimmered, “Sure!”

 

“There you two are!” Lance said as he and Hunk rounded the corner into the training room, “What…what are you doing?”

“Lance, oh my god!” Keith said, spreading out his notes over the floor, “Come take a look at this, we think we’ve narrowed down bigfoot’s location.”

“It’s all circumstantial right now,” Pidge said, “we’re going off of Keith’s memory for like, half, and we can’t go check but…” She smiled up at them, “I think this is the closest anyone’s ever come to figuring it out!” 

Lance and Hunk looked at each other, very confused as Keith and Pidge giggled---giggled!---and kept going over their notes. “O…okay…”Hunk said, “Well, I’m glad you two are getting along now, but Coran said its time to clean the palace.”

Pidge and Keith blinked, “It’s that late already?” Pidge asked. Hunk and Lance nodded. 

“Well…” Keith said, “You go on without us. We’re really close to a breakthrough.”

“Oh, come on, guys,” Lance said, “This will all still be here when we’re done. We could really use a hand down there!”

Keith and Pidge looked at each other before they both looked up at the same time and started clapping for Lance, in perfect sync.

Lance grimaced, turning to Hunk, “We’ve created monsters.” Hunk nodded in agreement.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think! my tumblr is dork-empress


End file.
